The present invention relates to the use of a sugar alcohol mixture containing 6-O-.alpha.-D-glucopyranosyl-D-sorbitol (1,6-GPS) and 1-O-.alpha.-D-glucopyranosyl-D-mannitol (1,1-GPM) in pharmaceuticals, food products and luxury food products as antibacterially active compounds, in particular in combination with zinc, and to the products containing these substances.
The common cold is a widespread illness which causes unpleasant symptoms. Microorganisms which cause common cold, for example bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, or viruses such as rhinovirus, are mainly present in the throat, pharynx and the nasal passages of the organisms which are infected, where it is generally possible to control them directly with active compounds. Suitable administration forms for pharmacologically active compounds are, for example, lozenges or compacts. Such administration forms are characterized in that they are solid formulations which slowly dissolve in the throat and the pharynx and which thereby inhibit multiplication and propagation of the microorganisms which are present on the surface of or on the mucous membranes.
Zinc is known as a pharmaceutically active substance for controlling microorganisms which cause common colds. In a study involving rhinoviruses, it was shown that the antiviral effects are a direct function of the amount of free Zn.sup.2+ ions (Merluzzi et al., in: Research Communications in Chemical Pathology and Pharmacology Vol. 66, (1989) 3, 425-440). Free, i.e. uncomplexed, zinc ions are nowadays rated as a pharmacological agent which markedly reduces both the duration and the severity of the symptoms of colds (Mossad et al., in: Annals of Internal Medicine, Vol. 125 (1996) 2, 81-87 and Godfrey et al., in: Alternative Therapies, Vol. 2, (1996) 6, 63-72). An essential precondition for the observed therapeutic effect of zinc is the necessity that the pharmaceutic excipient which contains the zinc ions, for example a lozenge, has to be taken and allowed to dissolve in the mouth if possible without interruption once the symptoms have manifested themselves, for example every 1.5 to 2 hours. The reason for this is the fact that the zinc ions act topically in the mouth, the nasal passages and the pharynx.
However, this way of continuously administering active compounds in the mouth has a number of considerable disadvantages, since the mono- and disaccharides which are present in most cases in the pharmaceutical excipient promote caries formation. For this reason, it is advantageous to employ tooth-friendly sugar substitutes as a replacement for the caries-promoting sugar. Sorbitol and mannitol are known to be suitable as sugar substitutes for use in zinc-containing preparations. The use of sorbitol and mannitol, however, has the disadvantage that these compounds dissolve more rapidly in the mouth and the pharynx, so that the relatively long and continuous action time of the zinc ions which is required is not always ensured. Additionally, it is known, for example, from U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,409,905 and 5,002,970 that both sorbitol and mannitol have metal-complexing properties and also complex zinc. From Godfrey et al. in: The Journal of International Medical Research 20 (1992), 234-246 and Zarembo et al., in: Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Vol. 81, (1992) 2, 128-130, it is also known that mannitol and sorbitol have zinc-complexing action, and it is additionally known that mannitol-, sorbitol- and zinc-salt-containing lozenges consequently have a considerably reduced activity with respect to shortening the duration of and lessening the symptoms of colds (Smith et al., in: Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 33 (1989) 5, 646-648). The mannitol-zinc and sorbitol-zinc complexes which are formed convert the zinc into a pharmaceutically ineffective form.